Security Architect – Mid

Koniag Government Services•Washington, DC

4d•Onsite

About The Position

Koniag Data Solutions, LLC, a Koniag Government Services company, is seeking a skilled Mid-Level Security Architect to support the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). The ideal candidate is an experienced cybersecurity professional with a solid foundation in security architecture design, risk management, and the implementation of security controls across federal enterprise IT environments. This individual will work collaboratively with the Senior Cybersecurity Architect, SBA IT teams, system owners, and key stakeholders to support the design, documentation, and implementation of security architectures that protect SBA's systems, networks, and data assets while enabling the agency's mission. The Mid-Level Security Architect will support the design, development, and implementation of enterprise security architectures and solutions in alignment with SBA's cybersecurity strategy, mission requirements, and applicable federal security policies and frameworks. Working under the direction of the Senior Cybersecurity Architect, this individual will contribute meaningfully to architecture design activities, security assessments, and the integration of security requirements across SBA's technology landscape.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Cybersecurity, Information Technology, Computer Science, Systems Engineering, or a related field from an accredited college or university.
5+ years of progressive experience in cybersecurity, with at least 2 years in a security architecture, security engineering, or senior security analyst role with demonstrated responsibility for architecture-related activities.
Demonstrated experience contributing to the design, assessment, and documentation of security architectures within a federal government or large enterprise IT environment.
One or more of the following certifications: Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Certified Information Security Manager (CISM), CompTIA Security+ (with demonstrated experience in architecture or engineering roles), GIAC Defensible Security Architecture (GDSA), AWS Certified Security – Specialty, Microsoft Certified: Azure Security Engineer Associate, or equivalent cloud security certification.
Strong communication skills in English – both written and oral – with the ability to effectively convey security architecture concepts, assessment findings, and design recommendations to both technical and non-technical audiences, including SBA IT leadership and government stakeholders.
Solid understanding of enterprise security architecture frameworks and methodologies, including the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF), SABSA, TOGAF, and their practical application within a federal IT environment.
Working knowledge of federal cybersecurity policies, frameworks, and compliance requirements, including NIST SP 800-53, NIST RMF, FISMA, FedRAMP, and applicable CISA guidance and directives, and their implications for security architecture design and assessment activities.
Experience designing and assessing security architectures for cloud environments, including AWS, Microsoft Azure, and/or Google Cloud Platform (GCP), with working knowledge of cloud-native security services, controls, and architecture patterns.
Demonstrated familiarity with Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) principles, design patterns, and implementation approaches, with experience applying ZTA concepts to security architecture design and assessment activities within a federal or enterprise environment.
Experience supporting the NIST Risk Management Framework (RMF) and ATO process, including contributing to the development of SSPs, security control documentation, POA&Ms, and risk assessment artifacts.
Solid knowledge of network security architecture concepts, including secure network segmentation, defense-in-depth principles, perimeter security controls, micro-segmentation strategies, and secure remote access solutions.
Working knowledge of identity and access management (IAM) concepts and technologies, including multi-factor authentication (MFA), privileged access management (PAM), role-based access control (RBAC), and federated identity solutions, and their application in federal security architecture design.
Experience developing and contributing to threat models using industry-standard methodologies, such as STRIDE, PASTA, or MITRE ATT&CK, to identify architectural security risks and inform security design decisions.
Familiarity with secure software development practices, DevSecOps principles, and the integration of security requirements and controls into CI/CD pipelines and the SDLC.
Ability to develop clear, accurate, and comprehensive security architecture documentation, including architecture diagrams, data flow diagrams, interface control documents, and technical design documents.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to assess complex security architecture challenges, evaluate trade-offs, and develop practical, risk-informed architectural recommendations aligned with SBA's mission and operational constraints.
Ability to work effectively both independently and collaboratively within a team environment, taking direction from the Senior Cybersecurity Architect while contributing proactively to architecture activities and team deliverables.
Ability to obtain and maintain a Public Trust Clearance.

Nice To Haves

Master's degree in Cybersecurity, Information Assurance, Computer Science, or a related field.
7+ years of cybersecurity experience with a demonstrated focus on security architecture within a federal government or defense contracting environment.
CISSP – Information Systems Security Architecture Professional (CISSP-ISSAP) or SABSA Chartered Security Architect (SCF) certification.
Prior experience supporting SBA or other federal civilian agency cybersecurity architecture or security engineering programs, with demonstrated knowledge of SBA's IT environment, system portfolio, and security architecture priorities.
Experience supporting FedRAMP authorization processes, including familiarity with FedRAMP security requirements, authorization boundary documentation, and cloud service provider (CSP) security assessment activities.
Knowledge of the CDM (Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation) program, its component tools, and their integration into enterprise security architectures within federal civilian agencies.
Familiarity with secure cloud architecture patterns for containerized environments, microservices architectures, serverless computing, and API security design considerations within federal cloud deployments.
Experience with software-defined networking (SDN), software-defined wide area networking (SD-WAN), or secure access service edge (SASE) security architecture concepts and their application in federal enterprise environments.
Knowledge of data security and privacy architecture considerations, including data classification frameworks, data loss prevention (DLP) architectures, encryption strategies, and the integration of privacy by design principles into federal system architecture.
Familiarity with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) security architecture considerations, including the security implications of AI/ML adoption and the integration of AI/ML technologies into federal cybersecurity architectures.
Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP) certification.
Experience contributing to enterprise cybersecurity strategy development, technology roadmap planning, and security capability gap analysis activities within a federal government or large enterprise environment.
Familiarity with industrial control systems (ICS) or operational technology (OT) security architecture concepts and their relevance to federal agency security architecture programs.

Responsibilities

Support the development and maintenance of SBA's enterprise cybersecurity architecture, contributing to the creation, review, and updating of reference architectures, security design patterns, architecture decision records (ADRs), technical security roadmaps, and supporting architecture documentation.
Assist in the design and implementation of security architectures for on-premises, cloud, and hybrid IT environments, ensuring security controls and requirements are appropriately integrated throughout the system development lifecycle (SDLC) and that new and existing systems meet SBA's security architecture standards.
Collaborate with SBA IT architects, system owners, developers, and program teams to identify and incorporate security requirements into the design, development, procurement, and deployment of new and existing SBA systems and applications.
Conduct security architecture reviews and technical assessments of proposed and existing SBA systems and solutions, identifying vulnerabilities, architectural weaknesses, security control gaps, and areas of non-compliance with federal security requirements, and documenting detailed findings and remediation recommendations.
Support the development and maintenance of threat models for SBA systems and applications, applying industry-standard methodologies such as MITRE ATT&CK and STRIDE to systematically identify, assess, and prioritize security risks associated with SBA's technology landscape.
Assist with the NIST Risk Management Framework (RMF) and Authorization to Operate (ATO) process, including contributing to the development and review of System Security Plans (SSPs), security control documentation, Plan of Action and Milestones (POA&Ms), and risk assessment artifacts in accordance with NIST guidelines and SBA's RMF procedures.
Provide technical support and working-level guidance on Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) principles and assist in the design, documentation, and implementation of Zero Trust frameworks, controls, and capabilities within SBA's enterprise environment in alignment with federal ZTA requirements and SBA's Zero Trust roadmap.
Research and evaluate emerging cybersecurity technologies, tools, and solutions, preparing technical assessments and recommendations to support informed SBA security technology investment decisions and capability improvement initiatives.
Support the development, review, and maintenance of cybersecurity policies, standards, guidelines, and procedures, ensuring alignment with NIST, FISMA, FedRAMP, and other applicable federal cybersecurity requirements and SBA-specific operational needs.
Collaborate with SOC, incident response, vulnerability management, and privacy teams to ensure security architecture designs and recommendations support effective threat detection, incident response, vulnerability remediation, and privacy protection capabilities across SBA's enterprise.
Develop and maintain accurate and comprehensive security architecture documentation, including security architecture diagrams, data flow diagrams, network topology diagrams, interface control documents, and technical design documents that reflect SBA's current and target security architecture states.
Assist in the assessment and documentation of security implications associated with emerging technologies and SBA technology modernization initiatives, including cloud migration, artificial intelligence adoption, API integration, and containerization, as they relate to SBA's security architecture and risk posture.
Prepare and deliver technical briefings, architecture review findings, and written reports to SBA stakeholders, clearly communicating security architecture assessments, design decisions, and recommendations in a manner appropriate to the audience.
Stay current with the evolving federal cybersecurity threat landscape, emerging technology trends, vulnerability disclosures, and changes to federal cybersecurity policies and frameworks, proactively applying new knowledge to improve SBA's security architecture and inform architectural recommendations.